Slow Motion
by WiccanOne
Summary: Tori has been abused most of her life. When all the Ranger's start to find out, can at least one of them help her? Rated for abusive situations.
1. Killer HomeLife

AN: This si an AU fic. So, that is the reason why somethings will happen differently. Read On.

_Chapter One: Killer Home-Life_

"Mark! How could you blow that money?! You were supposed to pay the bills with that. What, did you spend it on a nice new office whore?!" Tori heard her mouth yell. Tori shook her head. Her parents had been fighting all weekend. She had to get out of there.

"Now Balinda, if you weren't off Fucking your co-workers, maybe I would come home more." Tori's father retorted. Tori jumped up from her bed, grabbed her backpack, and ran downstairs. 

"I'm not, but maybe I should start screwing them. Because not having you home is the highlight of my day." Was the last thing Tori heard her mother say before she slammed the door. Tori was now on her front porch. She figured maybe she'd go to Storm Chargers. Then, she realized it was probable closed. It was well past eleven, and that's when the store usually closed. Tori thought for a moment. She didn't want to go over to any of her friends houses, they were probable all asleep. Tori decided she was going to head over to Ninja Ops. She didn't think anyone would be there at that time of night, and it was very far away from her house. A plus on it's own. Tori started to head over to her Blue Van, when she realized, she had left her keys in the kitchen....where her parents war was ragging. Tori sighed. It was a nice night for a walk anyway. Suddenly the back door, near which Tori was standing, flung open.

"That worthless little shit, where did she go!" Her father yelled. Tori heard her mothers car start. She was leaving. She wouldn't be there to help Tori if her father noticed where she was. Tori quickly ducked behind her van. "She left, and didn't even bother to take this piece of crap with her!" He boomed, throwing her keys at one of the Van windows near where Tori was hiding. Tori let out a little shriek as a piece of glass hit her arm. Tori's father hurried around to the side of the Van where Tori was and grabbed her by the hair. "You tell us before you go anywhere!" He yelled. A tear ran down Tori's face.

"I'm sorry, I will next time." She forced out as the pain in her head surged. Tori's father shook her head by her hair.

"No. Not next time. There isn't going to be a next time!" He yelled, starting to drag her toward the house. Tori pulled back, pulling her hair out of his grasp. Her father spun around and smacked her in the face. Tori could taste the coper-like blood in her mouth as her lip broke. He hit her once more. Tori knew she wold have a black eye in about an hour. He grabbed her arms. "You are coming in this house. I have had enough of you disobeying me!" He said. Tori shook her head before pushing him away from her with as much force as she could muster. He stumbled backward. Tori quickly turned around, swept her bag off the ground, and ran as fast as she could toward Ninja Ops.

As Tori ran, she heard her father's car start up. He was going to follow her. She kept running, taking ever shortcut she knew. She had a feeling he had stopped following her once she left her neighborhood. But, Tori didn't stop running until she was safely inside Ninja Ops. And even then, the only reason she came to a complete stop is because she ran smack into Cam. Before Tori could fall backwards, Cam grabbed her arms. Tori flinched and Cam let go.

"Tori, what's wrong, are you okay?" He asked as he walked over to the wall and turned on the lights. Tori looked down, letting her hair drop over her face.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She said, rubbing her arm. Cam walked back over to Tori. He notice a dark spot forming around her eye, even through her hair. He then looked down at her arm and saw the bruise that had started to turn it's light-to-dark-brown color. Cam furrowed his eyebrows.

"Tori, what happened?" He asked with concern in his voice. He heard Tori sniffle before she looked up. Cam gasped. The ring around Tori's eye, he now saw, was a full on Black Eye. And, Tori's lip was busted and bleeding a bit. Along with a bruise that was forming on her cheek. "My God, Tori. What happened to you?" He asked, walking over to a cabinet and pulling out a First Ad kit. Tori ignored the question.

"Um, I didn't think anyone would be here." She said meekly. Cam brought the kit over.

"I was just going to go to bed when you ran in. That's why all the lights were out." He said, opening the kit. "Now, what happened?" He asked again. Tori felt herself start to panic. How could she tell anyone that her father did this. She couldn't, not now at least.

"Um, I got into a fight with a Kelzake. I don't know where it came from. And, I had left my morpher at home." Tori lied. The reason Tori's morpher wasn't on her hand was because it was in her backpack. Which she had dropped when she had run into Cam. "This was the closest place to go, so here I am." Tori said, finishing the lie. Cam nodded as he whipped off her lip with some Peroxide.

"I'll drive you home okay." Cam said, turning around and putting the First Ad kit back in the cabinet. Cam missed the real panic because his back was turned.

"No, Cam, really, that's okay. I'm sure the Kelzake is gone by now. I can walk." She said hastily. Cam shook his head as he turned back around. 

"You're already hurt. Just let me drive you home." He insisted. Tori reluctantly nodded. She would be okay. Maybe her dad would be asleep. Or, her mom would be home. Yeah, that's right, she would be home.

Within 5 minutes, Cam was pulling up in front of Tori's house. Tori looked at Cam.

"Thanks." She muttered, grabbing her bag and getting out of the car. Cam didn't drive away. Tori knew he was waiting until she got in the house. Which was nice of him, but she really wished he would leave. Suddenly, the front door flew open.

"How dare you come back here, you little bitch!" He father yelled, walking quickly toward Tori. "You are going to be so sorry for pushing me." He said, grabbing her arm. He pushed her ahead of him, staying in one spot, making sure she went into the house and didn't take off again. Tori was really scared. Her mom's car wasn't there. Which meant, she was in for a real beating when she got inside. Tori stopped. Cam was still sitting there. She knew he probable had his 'Cam-worry-face' on. Tori turned around. She couldn't go in that house. She was suddenly happy Cam was still sitting there. He was her getaway ride. She ran toward her father, jumped up, and did a twisting flip over his head. The second she had jumped her father had ducked. As soon as Tori landed (wincing as she did), she ran toward Cam's car. She quickly opened the door and jumped in.

"Don't ask, just drive." She ordered. After seeing and hearing what happened, Cam obeyed without question. 


	2. Q&A

_Chapter Two: Q&A_

"Tori, what was that?" Cam asked as he drove back toward Ninja Ops. Tori shook her head.

"That was a monster." She said. Cam raised an eyebrow.

"I thought that was your....." Cam started.

"Father? Same difference." She said. Cam sighed.

"Kelzaks didn't attack you, did they?" He asked. Tori shook her head.

"No." She whispered. "But, I can't go back there." Tori said as Cam pulled up to the forest Ninja Ops was hidden in. They got out of the car and started walking toward the water fall. They then proceeded to walk through it and into Ops. "If I do, he'll kill me." She said, sitting down. Cam sighed.

"You could stop him with your powers." He offered. Tori shook her head.

"If I hit him with my Ninja Powers, I won't be able to stop until he was dead. And, I don't want to kill anyone." She said, standing up from her chair and walking around. She ran a hand through her hair. "I don't know what to do. I don't have anywhere to sleep. I don't have a home anymore." She muttered. "I can't tell anyone else what happened to me." She added. Then she spun around to face Cam.

"_You _can't tell anyone what happened to me. Please?" She asked, her voice breaking. Cam furrowed his eyebrows and nodded his head.

"Okay Tori, I won't." He said reluctantly. Tori sighed.

"Can I just sleep at Ninja Ops tonight?" She asked. Cam nodded.

"Actually, me and my father live just through that hallway." Cam said, pointing to the hallway he always came through. "We have a guest room. You can stay in there." He said. Tori nodded.

"Thank You." She said, looking Cam in the eye. Cam nodded.

"Your Welcome." He said. "I'll show you where it is." He said before leading her through the hallway.

When Cam walked into the Ninja Ops main room the next day, his eyes widened at what was on the table. All sorts of kinds of breakfast. Tori was sitting at the very end of the table.

"Somebody must be hungry this morning." Cam commented as he gestured to the coffee as if to say 'May I?' Tori nodded to Cam about the coffee.

"I couldn't sleep. So I kinda, stole your car keys and bought some stuff to make breakfast for everyone." She said meekly with a small smile. Cam laughed a little bit.

"Thanks." He said, sitting down next to Tori. It was only 7 in the morning. They still had about half-an-hour before the others got to Ninja Ops. Cam looked over at Tori, who was staring down into her coffee cup. "How long has it been happening?" Cam asked suddenly. Tori looked up, snapping out of her Coffee-Cup trance.

"Huh?" She asked, a little space-y. 

"How long has your father been abusing you?" Cam asked bluntly. Tori looked back down into her coffee cup, running her finger around the rim.

"Since I was ten." She said, looking back up. "So, I guess, for about seven years." She said as she looked Cam in the eyes. The look in Cam's eyes showed pity, concern, and a little bit of admiration.

"I probable would've gone insane." Cam admitted. Tori smiled a bit.

"I'd have to be sane first to be able to go insane." She said with her small smirk. "Plus, I had to stay there, stay sane." Tori said. Cam furrowed his eyebrows.

"Why?" He asked, suddenly realizing it was kind of a stupid question. Tori shrugged.

"I have a sister." She said. Cam's eyebrows raised this time.

"I never knew that." He said. Tori smiled a bit again.

"You never asked." She said. "Anyway, she goes to a boarding school up in New England. Her names Trinie. Shes only a year younger than me and she had enough sense to try to get out of there as fast as she could." Tori said. Cam opened his mouth to say something, but Tori cut him off. "She's coming home in about two weeks. I'm gonna try to get an apartment by then so she doesn't have to stay with our father." Tori said, taking another sip of coffee. Cam just looked at Tori. He was kind of amazed at how strong Tori was. Before Cam could thing any further, there were footsteps heard coming toward Ops. And, in walked Shane and Dustin. Tori turned to face them, and they gasped. Tori turned back around quickly, realizing she forgot to put make-up over her black eye. Shane and Dustin walked forward.

"What did your dad do this time? What happened?" Shane asked, kneeling next to Tori. Cam looked at them. He looked a little angry.

"You two knew?" He asked. Tori looked over at Cam.

"I made them promise not to tell anyone." She admitted. She then looked back at Shane and Dustin.

"I left." She said. Dustin sighed.

"Finally." He said. Tori smiled at him a little. Dustin and Shane had been telling Tori to leave her house for 6 of the seven years. They had always told her she could stay at there houses. Tori always said no, thinking she need to stay with her mother. That was, until her mother stopped fighting back for her. Tori knew her mother could leave if she wanted. So, Tori knew she could leave know and not feel bad.

"Yeah, I'm gonna try to get an apartment sometime this week." She said. Dustin furrowed his eyebrows.

"Where are you going to stay until then?" He asked.

"In the guest bedroom here." Cam spook up. Tori looked over at him with a look that said 'Thank You'. Cam nodded in response to the look. Tori then stood up.

"Guys, I'm gonna go try to cover this up," She said, pointing to the black eye. "Before Blake and Hunter get here." She said, before walking back to the guest room where her backpack was. Once Tori was gone, Shane and Dustin sat down next to Cam.

"What happened last night? What made Tori leave?" Shane asked. Cam sighed. He then told them what had happened.

"Wow." Dustin said. Shane nodded.

"Yeah, I don't think Tori's ever fought back." He said. Before anyone could say anything else, Tori came back into the room. 


	3. Splashing

_Chapter Three: Splashing_

Tori had covered her bruised eye and was about to ask what the boys had been talking about, when Hunter and Blake came in.

"Hey." They both said to everyone one. There was another round of 'Heys' and then Sensei came out.

"I would like you to all to walk out to the clearing in front of the water fall and begin hand-to-hand combat." Sensei said before flipping onto Cam's shoulder. Everyone groaned a bit and reluctantly went out. "Now, Hunter, you will go against Tori first." Sensei said. They both nodded and walked into the center of the circle the Ninja's had formed. They both bowed before getting into fighting stance. Hunter threw a punch at Tori first. Tori blocked it. He sent another punch at her. She blocked it once more. Without warning, Tori ducked down and sent her foot out, sweeping it across the ground and knocking Hunter off his own feet. He fell to the ground and did a backward roll, getting away from Tori. Tori sent her foot at Hunter's face while he was still on the ground. Hunter caught and twisted it with enough force that Tori went twirling into the air. Tori landed on the dried leaves with an 'Oomph' before kicked herself into standing. Tori and Hunter both stood in fighting stance again. Tori threw a jab at Hunter's face, and he blocked it. She threw another jab at his stomach. He blocked it again. Tori kept throwing jabs at Hunter, and he kept trying to block them as fast as he could. He started to furrow his eyebrows at the look on Tori's face. It was as if she was imaging him as somebody else. Suddenly, Tori kicked Hunter in the stomach. He had been concentrating on blocking her jabs, so he hadn't even noticed her foot start to go into the air. Hunter landed a few feet away from Tori. He could tell she had accidentally tapped into some of her ranger strength by how far away he landed. Everyone looked at Tori now. Cam, Shane, and Dustin looked at each other and then back to Tori. She was breathing heavily and shaking slightly, she was also balling her fists very tightly. She un-balled her fists and ran both of her hands through her hair, holding her arms there for a second before regaining control of her self and reaching out to help Hunter up.

"Sorry." She muttered. Hunter was breathing heavily also. But he was breathing heavily because of what had just happened.

"S'okay." Hunter said as he took Tori's hand and stood up. Sensei chose not to say anything.

"Okay, Shane, you will now fight against Blake." He said. After Shane and Blake had fought, Sensei had Dustin fight against Cam. Once Cam had whipped Dustin's butt, Sensei just had the rangers run for about an hour. 

"Okay, rangers. That is enough for today." Sensei said, before walking into his little hut. The rangers all nodded.

"We have to head over to Storm Chargers, we got a shift." Hunter said as he and Shane started to head out to their car.

"Hey, dudes, can I catch a ride. I have to make up for missing my shift yesterday." Dustin said, running after Shane and Hunter. Then, the only people that were left in Ninja Ops were Tori, Blake, and Cam.

"Tori, do you need a ride home?" Blake asked hopefully. Cam rolled his eyes and walked over to his computer. Tori shook her head. Blake nodded. "Um, okay." He said in a downcast tone. Tori bit her lip. She didn't want to tell anyone else, but Blake just looked so sad.

"No, you see, I'm staying at Ninja Ops for a bit." Tori said. Blake furrowed his eyebrows.

"Why?" He asked. Tori bit her lip again.

"M-My parents went out of town." She lied quickly. She had been getting better at it. "And they don't thinks it's safe for me to stay home alone." Tori added to make the story more plausible. Blake nodded.

"Okay." He said before walking out of Ninja Ops. Tori sat down at the table in the middle of Ninja Ops. Cam turned around in his chair and looked at her.

"You don't have to stay around here, you know." He said. Tori looked up with a small smile.

"Don't take this the wrong way but, I kinda do. My car, my board, all my stuff, is at my house." She said. Cam rolled his eyes. 

"You could have gone with Blake." He suggested. Tori raised an eyebrow.

"Are you trying to get rid of me?" She asked in mock anger. Tori then smile again. "You know, Cam, you need to get out more." She said suddenly. Cam sighed.

"If this is a ploy to get me to drive you somewhere, or let you take my keys again..." He started. Tori shook her head.

"No, I really do think you should get out more." She said sincerely. Cam stood up from his chair and went and sat by Tori.

"Where do you propose we go." He asked. Tori's smile widened before she grabbed Cam's keys off the table where she had left them that morning.

"Come On, lets go." She said as she stood up. Cam didn't move from his spot at the table. 

"Go where?" He asked. Tori shook her head and then grabbed Cam's hand, dragging him out of his seat. She then dragged him out of Ninja Ops. Once they were past the water fall, Tori dropped Cam's hand.

"Come On." She said as she headed toward Cam's car. He followed her. Once they got the the car, Tori pointed to the passenger side. "Get in." She said as she climbed into the front seat.

"Where are we going?" He asked again as he also climbed into the car and shut his door.

"You'll see." Tori said before starting the car.

"The beach?" Cam asked as Tori stopped the car. Tori nodded.

"Yeah, you know it. Sand, water, shells." She said sarcastically as they both got out of the car.

"Very funny." Cam said. The two walked toward the shore. "You said you didn't have you surf board." Cam commented. Tori nodded.

"Yup, but this isn't a surf-board-beach-trip. It's a 'Check out the water, HA I splashed you' beach trip." Tori said as she kicked water at Cam. Cam couldn't help but smile as the water hit him. He kicked some water back at Tori as they walked farther into the water. Tori bent over and splashed more water at Cam. Within second, there was sea water flying in all directions. Cam threw it at Tori, who then threw more at Cam. This went on until for about 10 minutes. The two were waist deep in water and fully soaked when Tori disappeared under the waves. Cam looked around. He hadn't seen her go under. He had been to busy wiping water out of his eyes. Suddenly, he felt a tug on his leg. Then another. Then, Tori jumped up and dunked him under. Cam let out a laugh as they both surfaced again.

"It's getting dark, we should head back." Cam commented, trying to keep from laughing. Tori looked up at the sky and saw that the sun was setting.

"Huh, so it is." She said before heading inland. Cam followed. Once they were out of the water they ran back to the car. The cause being, it was getting cold. Cam drove back to Ninja Ops. When they ran inside, they saw Sensei sitting just outside his little hut.

"Sorry, dad. I forgot to tell you we were leaving." Cam said. If hamsters could smile, Sensei would have.

"I see you went swimming." He said. Tori nodded.

"Yeah, um, we went down to the beach." She said. 

"Interesting swim clothes." Sensei commented before walking back into his hut. Cam and Tori both looked down and realized they had gone swimming in there jeans and T-shirts. They now had an extra 10 pounds each from all the water they were carrying in there clothes. They both laughed.

"We should probable go change." Cam commented. Tori nodded and the two went off to there separate rooms. Once they were changed, they came back out into the main room. Cam and Tori both walked into the kitchen. "Do you want Hot Chocolate or Coffee?" Cam asked, taking both out of a cabinet. Tori pointed to the Hot Chocolate box.

"That one." She said. Cam nodded and started making two cups worth. Tori sat at the kitchen table hugging herself, trying to keep warm. Cam turned around to face Tori.

"Are you cold?" He asked. Tori shook her head.

"When my hair dries, there's a big chance I won't be cold anymore. But while it's wet, you will have a shivering ranger on your hands." She said with a small smile. Cam brought the two cups of Hot Chocolate over to the table and sat down himself.

"Got it." Cam said, handing Tori her Hot Chocolate.


	4. New And Amazing Things

_Chapter Four: New And Amazing Things_

Tori and Cam sat by a fire, in a living room toward the back of Ops. Neither of them really said anything. They just sat, watching the flames. Every once and a while Cam would looked over at Tori. The flames seamed to dance in her blonde hair. And, when Cam wasn't chancing looks over at Tori, Tori was chancing looks over at Cam. The two had never really spent much time together. There meeting tended to go like, 'Hi, Training, Oop, There's the monster, We better go fight it, it's dead, bye now'. As you can see, not much talking would come out of that. So the two sat. It wasn't really an awkward silence either. It was one of those comfortable ones. Suddenly, something clattered to the floor. Cam had moved his foot and knocked bowl off the little coffee table in front of them. They both bent down to pick it up. Cam reached it first. When Tori and Cam both turned there heads to look at the other they were very close. Cam took a chance, and leaned forward just a fraction of a centimeater. It didn't even look like he had done it on perpose Their lips touched and a small shock flahsed as them did. They both kinda jumped back.

"Oh, um, s-sorry." Cam stuttered. Tori shook her head, a kinda far off look in her eye.

"No, no, it was, um, it was my fault." She said. Cam placed the bowl back on the counter. He then saw Tori stand up. "I think I'm gonna head off to bed." She said quickly before walking out of the little living room and toward the guest room. Once Tori was out of site, Cam mentally hit himself in the head. He then got up and walked to his room.

The next day, all the rangers were in Ninja Ops. Training, Talking, whatever, when the alarm went off.

"We've got company down by the pere." Cam said as he got up from his computer desk. All the rangers went to the middle of the room.

"Samurai Storm, Ninja storm, Thunder storm, ranger form. Ha! Ninja Ranger Power!" They all yelled. They then transformed and in a streak of their different colors, they were at the pere.

"Ah, rangers. Nice of you to join me." The alien said. He was pale white with to large blue horns on his head. On his shoulders were blue dotted black bowl looking things. His pants were Aladdin style, and his shirt was a back-pack attached to his front.

"Nice pack." Shane commented sarcastically.

"You do not insult the pack!" The monster yelled sending out a blast of something from his eyes. It landed right in front of the rangers and a fog seemed to rise. Suddenly, all the rangers were down on the ground.

"What is it with these dudes and making us fall down?" Dustin asked. Slowly, their different colors started to come of them in beams of light. A minute later, all their powers were sucked into the aliens back-pack.

"Parting is such sweet sorrow!" The alien said before disappearing. Hunter hit his hand on the ground.

"He just stool our powers." He said.

"Thanks for stating the obvious, bro." Blake said as all the rangers stood up. "We better get back to Ops." Blake added. And that's where they went.

Cam was looking through pile of scrolls as all the rangers were standing around Ninja Ops.

"I found something." Cam called to the rangers. They all came over. "This alien is called Aspirant, meaning Seeker. Lothor send him down to steel our powers. But we have record of him. There is a scroll in here for 'Returning what the Seeker has taken'." Cam said, taking a small scroll out and placing it in a bowl on the table. The everybody jumped slight as the scroll turned to liquid. "All we have to do is put some blood from a ranger on this rose stem," He said, holding up a rose stem. "And a bit more in this bowl, and then drop the rose stem in the bowl." Cam said. When he looked up, most of the rangers had backed away from the bowl. All except Tori. Tori looked at the boys standing behind her. Tori heaved a heavy sighed before walking over, picking up the rose stem, holding her hand with the stem in it over the bowl, and squeezing her hand so the thorns pierced her skin. Tori didn't seem to wince at all. Blood dripped onto the rose stem in her hand, and then dripped down into the bowl. Tori then dropped the stem in the bowl and shook the blood in her palm into it.

"Such manly men." Tori commented before walking up the stairs and out of Ninja Ops.

"Don't you think that would have hurt her a little?" Blake asked as he starred after Tori.

"I doubt it." Shane said. Cam and Dustin seemed to understand what Shane meant, but the thunders looked at him cluelessly, deciding not to ask.

"I'll go talk to her." Dustin said, bounding up the stairs. It took him about two seconds to find Tori after that. She hadn't even left the forest. She head barley even left the waterfall. "Tori, are you okay?" Dustin asked, sitting down next to Tori. Tori shook her head. "What's wrong?" He asked. Tori turned her head toward Dustin.

"We kissed." Tori blurted out. Dustin furrowed his eyebrows.

"You and Blake?" Dustin asked. Tori shook her head. Dustin's eyes then widened. "You and Cam?!" He asked. Tori nodded. "Woah, dude, I mean...." Dustin started.

"And you know what I did afterward?" Tori asked cutting Dustin off. Dustin shook his head 'No'. Tori put her face in her hands. "I ran. I said, 'I better go to bed' and then left him sitting there." Tori said. Dustin couldn't help but laugh. Tori looked up, shooting daggers. "It's not funning." She snapped. Dustin nodded.

"No. But it is funny that you say that after spilling your blood in a bowl. So, excuse me if I say, that was random." He said. Tori smiled a bit. But then, they were interrupted.

"Ah, two little rangers, sitting in a row." Aspirant said. Dustin and Tori jumped into fighting stance.

"Dude, um, doesn't there kinda have to be more then two for it to be a whole row?" Dustin asked. Before the alien could 'answer', Cam, Shane, Hunter, and Blake came out of Ninja Ops.

"Tori, it's your blood, you have to throw it at him." Cam said, throwing a ball of energy at her. Tori caught it and hurled it at the aliens back-pack. It burst open and 6 colors flew out. Immediately, the rangers were transformed.  
The rangers formed their blaster, and aimed it at the alien. Within seconds, it was destroyed and the rangers powered down.

"Is that it?" Shane asked. When no Scroll Of Empowerment appeared the rangers shrugged and went inside. When they got into Ninja Ops, they saw Sensei standing by the computer with some very small suitcases.

"Cam, I need you to send me to Japan. A friend of mine has just called on me. I will be gone a few days." He said. Cam nodded and went over to the computer. He pushed a couple of buttons and then pressed the red one in the middle of the keyboard. Sensei disappeared.

"Well, I guess we got some vaca. time." Blake said.

"Great, you can spend it with me." They all heard a girl say from the doorway. Everyone turned around, and Blake's face broke out in a smile. "Jema!" He said happily before going over and giving the girl a big hug. "What are you doing here?" Blake asked, stepping back a bit. The girl, Jema, shrugged.

"Just visiting." She said. Suddenly, there was a coughing sound behind Blake. He turned around and saw the other rangers staring at the two.

"Oh, guys, this is Jema McLynne. She was a student at the Thunder Ninja Academy." He said, bringing Jema fully into Ops. Tori furrowed her eyebrows.

"No offense but, didn't Thunder Academy get taken over?" She asked. Jema nodded.

"Yeah, but I had worked a deal with the Sensei. You see, I asked if a could not come on Wednesdays and do make-up in Saturdays. He agreed, and the Academy was taken on a Wednesday." Jema said. Everyone nodded slowly.

"Usually, Jema lives in Orlando with her parents." Blake said. Jema stopped for a second.

"Yeah, but I figured I'd come see my old friend." She said. "Now, whadaya say we go take a spin around the track? It's been awhile since a whipped your ass." She said with a smile. Blake smiled two.

"Oh, no you won't. I'll defiantly beat you." He said, folding his arms. Jema smiled more and nodded your head.

"Oh, you think so, do you?" Jema asked, patting Blake on the cheek. Blake pointed at her.

"That's it." He said. Within seconds, they were both out the door and running. The rangers just stood looking at the spot the two had just occupied. Hunter started laughing.

"That was random." Shane said to Hunter. Hunter shook his head.

"Blake has had it bad for Jema since he met her. The fact that they left like that is just funny." He said.

"Well, I'm off to the track myself, anyone wanna come?" Dustin asked as he backed toward the door. Hunter walked over.

"Yeah." He said, and the two left. Tori started heading toward the door herself.

"I'm off to go apartment hunting, you guys wanna come?" Tori asked, hopping Cam would say no.

"Yeah, I'll go." Shane said. Cam just shook his head. Tori nodded. "Bye dude." Shane said as he and Tori walked out of Ninja Ops and Cam was left there all alone.

"Perfect ending to a _wonderful _day." Cam said sarcastically as he sat down in his computer chair.

AN: Sorry I'm so bad at the fights scenes, but I hope you could bare with me!lol R/R!


	5. Winning The Rat Race

_AN: I warn you, I have no medical knowledge. Sorry, please just bare with me._

_Chapter Five: Winning The Rat Race_

Jema took her helmet off as Blake pulled up next to her at the finished line of the track.

"Who beat you?" She asked, cupping her ear in her hand and leaning over to Blake. Blake rolled his eyes and pushed her away.

"You did." He muttered.

"That's right, mister." She said happily, dismounting her bike. Blake waved her off.

"Whatever." He said before taking his helmet off and dismounting his own bike. "So, what have you been doing this past few years?" Blake asked as if it had just been a few days since they had seen each other. Jema shrugged.

"Not much. School, training, biking. You know, the non motored kind." She said. Blake raised an eyebrow.

"Why non motored?" He asked. Jema shook her head.

"You know how my dad was. He hated all the dangerous stuff I did. When we moved, he wouldn't let me near my moto-bike. He said a could ride the normal ones, the ones 'Girls are supposed to ride'." She said, imitating her father's voice at the end. Blake sighed.

"Well, you get to moto for a little while at least." He said. Jema shook her head.

"Maybe more than a little while. I'm thinking about moving back out here. I'll be eighteen in, like, two months. Then my dad can't stop me." She said. Blake nodded.

"Yeah, that'd be great." He said with a big smile. Jema smiled back. She loved his smile, it was so real. She shook her head.

"Anyway, you wanna go get a bite to eat?" She asked. Blake nodded.

"Yeah." He said.

* * *

"What am I going to do?" Tori asked Shane while waving around a a paper she was holding that had listings of apartments for rent. She had just told Shane about the 'Cam Kiss' and was now asking his advise.

"Well, do you like him?" Shane asked as they walked up the steps to an apartment they were going to look at. Tori put her hands up to her face.

"No more hard questions." She said before opening the door and switching into interview mode.

* * *

"I win!" Dustin shouted as the two rangers got to the finish line. Hunter waved his hand at him.

"Your not gonna win a second time!" He shouted back before taking off around the track again. Dustin started his bike once more.

"Hey, not far!" He yelled, taking off after Hunter.

Tori walked back into Ninja Ops around 7 o'clock that night.

* * *

"Find anything?" Cam asked as he turned around in his chair. Tori was startled a bit by this because of the events of the day before. She thought for sure he wouldn't talk to her alone. Instead of saying all this however, Tori just shook her head.

"A big fat nothing." She said, falling into one of the chairs at the big table in the middle of Ops. Cam stood up from his chair.

"Sorry about that, I think I'm gonna go to bed." He said. He was obviously a bit mad at her by the tone in his voice. Tori looked after Cam as he walked into the little hallway.

"Cam!" She yelled after him desperately.

"'Night Tori." Cam yelled back just before Tori heard a door slam. Tori let her head fall to the table. She then lifted it up and looked around. She wanted to get out of there. But that wasn't going to happen without wheels. Tori bit her lip.

"I'm gonna go back and get my car." She said to herself out loud. She then stood up and walked out of Ops.

* * *

Tori hid in the bushes near her car. She would have gone over to get it. She had her keys in her pocket, all she had o do was drive away. Thing was, she had to walk past the living room window to get to her car. Which she then had to unlock, open the loud squeaky door, and climb in. Tori told a deep breath before doing a small Ninja Streak across her yard. Tori sighed a relieved sigh when she saw that her father wasn't barreling outside. Tori then stuck the keys in the lock. As she was turning it, someone came up behind her and hit her head against the side of her car.

"You bitch! How dare you come back here after what you did!" Her father yelled. He pulled her head back, and hit it against the car again. Tori started to get lightheaded as he hit her head against the car one more time. Tori called up all her strength, turned slightly, and push him into the grass a few feet away. She then turned back to the car and frantically, but clumsily, tried to turn the key and open the door to her van. When she got it unlock, her dad came up behind her, pulled her away from it, and through her onto the grass. He then kneeled down next to her and started to choke her. "You freak. You ungrateful little bitch. How dare you hit me?! I'll teach you a lesson you'll never forget!" He yelled. Tori tried to push him away, but she could barley see him. It when she stopped fighting, she felt him being pulled off her. She then registered her name had been yelled.

"Tori!" She had heard Blake yell. She tried to stand up to look at him, but her head hurt to much. She felt herself be picked up by Blake. She realized that Jema was with Blake.

"Quick. Get her in the car." Tori heard Jema say, and Tori heard her car door being opened. That was when Tori registered that Jema was with Blake. Within seconds, she heard two more doors shutting. She now realized that Blake was driving her car while Jema was looking at her to make sure she was going to be all right. "I think she might have a bit of a concussion. She'll have more than one hell of a headache when she really wakes up." Jema said. She then looked at Tori's neck. "And she'll be lucky if she only gets a few bruises." She added.

"How do you know some much about this?" Blake asked. Jema shook her head.

"I just have experience." She said in a 'I don't wanna talk about it' tone. "We should probable take her back to Ninja Ops." Jema added quickly. Blake nodded and headed the van toward the forest.

About ten minutes later, Tori felt herself being lifted out of her van and carried through the forest by Blake. She then felt herself being cared down steps and set onto a table. She then heard footsteps and a banging sound.

"Cam, get out here!" She heard Blake yell through Cam's door. '_Oh no oh no oh no!' _Tori thought to herself. '_He's gonna think I was so stupid for doing what I did!' _She added to her thoughts as she heard more footsteps.

"Jesus Christ." She heard Cam say as he quickened his pace. Tori figured she looked like hell. She pretty much guessed that she was bleeding, had grass stains all over her clothes, and a few rips in her shirt.

"That's what you get when your father beats the shit out of you." Tori heard herself mutter. If she could have forced enough energy to throw her hand over her mouth, she would have.

"What?" She heard Blake say in disbelief. Tori let out a small sigh and tried to sit up. This caused her to get very dizzy, but she managed.

"You heard me." She sort of snapped.

"Oh God, Tori." She heard Blake say. Apparently, he didn't notice the man he was throwing away from Tori back at her house, was her father. "I didn't know." He said. Cam reach up and check the wound on her forehead.

"Why did you go back there?" He asked. Blake looked over at Cam in astonishment.

"You knew?" he asked. Cam nodded, going over to the cabinet to get the first ad box.

"That's why Tori's staying here." Cam said. He then walked back over to Tori, opened the box, took out a disinfectant cloth, and dabbed Tori's forehead with it.

"I went back because I'm stupid and thought I could get my car." She half snapped, half muttered, answering Cam's question.

"There." Cam said, finishing cleaning Tori's wound even though he could see a bruise and a bump was beginning to form.. Tori reached up to rub the back of her neck and winced.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Jema said. Tori looked over at her.

"Why?" She asked. Jema pulled a compact out of her back pocket and handed it to Tori. Tori opened it and looked at her neck. There were bruises forming on it that said she had almost been choked to death. They were already starting to turn that yellowish/brown color. "That's just great!" Tori said sarcastically before hopping off the table. The second her feet hit the ground, Tori stumbled and fell against Cam who was standing closest to her. "My God, can't I even go lye down without cracking my head open?" She snapped to herself.

"Come on, Tori. I'll help you to your room." Cam said, letting Tori lean on him as he walked toward the guest room. In as bad a situation as it was, Cam was surprised to find that he enjoyed Tori leaning on him. He mentally berated himself for the thought as he helped Tori into the guest bedroom, and then onto the bed. As soon as Tori's head hit the pillow, she was out. Cam, seeing this, tried to wake her up to make sure she was okay. But it didn't work. Cam left the guest room and went into the main room. "She's definitely got a concussion. She just passed out." he said. Jema should her head.

"She'll probable be out for a day. Two days at the most. I'd worry, but not to much." She said, standing up from where she had sat. "Somebody's gotta stay with her though." Jema added.

"Do you want us to stay here with you, bro?" Blake asked. Cam shook his head.

"No, I live here anyway. Just go home." He said with a kinda sigh as he left the room and headed back to the guest room. Blake stood still for a second, staring in the direction of where Tori was. Jema pulled on his hand.

"There's nothing you can do." She said sincerely. Blake nodded and the two left.

AN: I Hope you liked that chapter! R/R!


	6. What Was I Thinking?

_AN: I know, I know. Long time, no chap. Hopefully this will remedy that:)_

_Chapter Six: "What Was I Thinking?"_

Cam walked into the guest room and looked over at the unconscious Tori.

"You could have just asked me for my keys." He muttered walking over to the bed. He thought she was asleep. So, you could imagine his surprise when she talked to him.

"No I couldn't have, you weren't talking to me." She said, eyes still closed. Cam opened his mouth to respond, but stopped when Tori opened her eyes. "When did it get so Goddamn bright in here?" She asked, squinting. Cam couldn't help but roll his eyes.

"About the same time you got your head smashed against a '69 Volkswagen van." He said. Tori slowly opened her eyes all the way.

"I appreciate the sarcasm, really, I do. But, shove it." She snapped. Cam held his hands up defensively.

"Hey, I'm just answering your question." He said in a voice that he hoped provoked a smile. It didn't, but that wasn't his fault. Tori sighed and looked down at herself.

"What I did was so stupid," She muttered to herself more than to Cam. Cam nodded. "Am I the poster girl for masochists or what." She said before Cam could say anything to her previous statement.

"Like I said, I would have given you my keys." Cam repeated. Tori shook her head and looked him in the eye. The look surprised Cam. It was a cross between disbelief, annoyance, and anger. But not just toward him. Some of that look was reserve for the person that had added to her collection of bruises today.

"Tell me the truth, Cam. Have you or have you not been pissed at me since the night we kissed." She said. Cam took a step back from Tori's bluntness. But, he quickly righted himself and shook his head.

"Don't you mean, since the night I kissed you and you practically ran out of the room?" He said in a sarcastic tone, folding his arms. Tori tried to furrow her eyebrows, but winced.

"I didn't practically run out of the room." She said, rubbing her temple. Cam sighed.

"Listen, Tori. Your head hurts, you should probable try to get some sleep." He said before leaving the room, closing the door behind him. Tori would have fallen down into her pillow and screamed. But didn't in fear of it hurting to much.

* * *

A few hours later, Tori woke up. She looked outside and saw it was dark. She figured it was about 1 in the morning. Tori slowly stood up from the bed and shuffled to the door. Once Tori had opened the door, she padded down the hallway toward the kitchen. Once in the kitchen, she was slightly surprised to see Cam sitting at the table.

"Your up late." She said to him as she walked toward the sink. Cam looked up.

"Um, yeah." He muttered, staring down into his own glass of water. Tori poured herself a glass and turned toward Cam. He didn't look sleepy so much as just, tired.

"I'm sorry." Tori said, slowly sitting down across from him. Cam looked up.

"What for?" He asked without thinking. Tori shook her head but found herself internally regretting the action.

"For 'Running out of the room'." She said.

"It's fine." Cam said. Tori smiled a bit.

"What, no sarcastic comment? No, 'Oh, did you run out, I didn't notice'?" She asked him, raising an eyebrows very slowly so it didn't cause as much pain. Cam shook his head.

"To tired for sarcastic remarks." He said, resting his head in his hands. "I've been working on the entry way to this place." Cam said. "It's a real pain." He added. Tori nodded.

"Why don't you go to sleep than?" She asked. Cam shook his head.

"I need to get this done." He said, getting up to started making a pot of coffee. Tori slowly got up. But lucky for her, Cam was moving about as fast as she was. As Cam flipped the pot on, Tori came over and pressed the button to turn it off.

"Finish it in the morning." She said. Cam turned his head and saw how close Tori was standing. He suddenly stepped back.

"You're probable right, if I screw up because I'm tired everyone might get locked out tomorrow." He muttered. Tori gave a definite nod, again regretting the movement as her head still ached.

"See, a tired ranger is a useless ranger." She said as they both headed out of the kitchen. Cam nodded.

"'Night, Tor." He said as Tori walked into her room. A few seconds later, she heard Cam's door close also. Tori walked over to her bed and slowly climbed into it. Tori's eyes lulled shut the second she laid her head down.

* * *

Tori slowly got up the next morning. It was Saturday, a day off if she was lucky. She slowly walked to the front of 'her' room and grabbed a long pole she had leaning against the door. She felt like going for a walk, but if she happened to come across her father, she didn't want him with in 5 feet of her.

Tori walked through town. Past Storm Chargers, past a few clubs, but she only slowed down to read one sign.

**Open Mic. Friday's at 7.**

Tori shook her head and started walking again. She headed down the beach.

"Tori!" She heard somebody called. Tori flinched a bit, but then realized it was a female voice. She turned to see who was running up to her. It was Jema. "Hey, Tori. Can I talk to you?" She asked. Tori sighed and couldn't help but roll her eyes.

"Whatever." Tori muttered. Jema slowed down, but completely ignored Tori's statement.

"About yesterday..." She started.

"Listen, can we just forget it? What I did was stupid, can we just leave it at that?" Tori asked. Jema opened her mouth to respond, but stopped when Blake came up to them.

"Hey." He said. Tori sighed and twirled the pole she was holding in her hand. Jema put a hand on Tori shoulder and the three Ninja's stopped.

"If you ever need to talk..." She started again. Tori pushed Jema's hand off her shoulder.

"Thanks." She said in a clipped manner before she turned and walked away. Blake took a step toward Tori's disappearing form, but Jema stopped him.

"Something tells me she's not in the mood to get bagged on for not being a nice little girl." She said.

* * *

Tori sat on the rocks at the beach. She was staring at her reflection in a small tide pool. Tori reached up and brought her blond hair into her line of vision. _It's time for a change _She thought to herself. She stood up on the rock and then heaved herself onto the boardwalk. She walked down it until she reached the middle. The middle of the boardwalk was the start of about 15 shops and salons. One of those salons was for hair. Tori headed toward that one.

* * *

Cam sat in Ninja Ops. He had lied to Tori the night before. He had told her he had been working on the entrance to Ops. Truth was, Cam had spent most of the night checking on Tori, making sure her concussion wasn't going to send her into a comma. He ran a hand through his hair and took a sip of coffee he had made.

"Hey Cam." He heard Tori's voice say from the doorway of the little living room at the back of Ops. But, when Cam looked up, he didn't exactly see Tori. It was her, definitely. But, her hair was a deep chestnut color. Tori rolled her eyes. "Don't like my hair?" She asked, running a hand through it.

"It's great if you're going for that 'Not Blond' look." He said somewhat sarcastically. Tori set her jaw.

"Well I am." She said, before turning and walking off to her room. She didn't really feel like talking. She just felt like looking for an apartment and getting away from the people...she loved.

* * *

R/R:) And sorry about any spacing problems. is being weird.  



	7. A Week

_Chapter Seven: A Week_

It had been a week since Tori had died her hair and started to distance herself from her friends. Her sister was coming in four days, and Tori had just gotten an apartment. She was currently in the main room of Ninja Ops. She was finishing up a letter telling her friends she had moved. She couldn't bring herself to actually _tell _them. She had barely talked to them in a week. She had to get away. She had this overwhelming feeling she was going to hurt them. She had already started to knock the dominos down the night Cam kissed her. Why not just drop a tone of bricks on the rest of them and be done with it. And, Dustin and Shane had been there for her when everything started to go wrong. Tori just felt like it was time to let them stop worrying about her. She had avoided Hunter and Blake like the plague. She hadn't talked to Blake about the night she went to get her van. And, she had no idea how much Hunter new.

Tori hit a few more keys on Cam's computer and then hit print. The letter printed out, and Tori picked it up. She then set it down again on the table in the middle of Ninja Ops. Tori walked over to the door and picked up her pack. She turned and looked at Ninja Ops one more time. If things worked out the way she was thinking, she would never see Ops again. Tori turned around and walked. She walked all the way out the her van, got in, and drove away. Toward her new home.

Cam, Dustin, and Shane walked into Ninja Ops. Hunter and Blake had stayed at the race track. Dustin stopped in front of Cam and Shane.

"Um, dude, is that supposed to be there?" He asked, pointing at the letter sitting on the table that read across the top:

_Rangers_

Cam walked over and picked up the note. It read:

_**Hey guys. Tori here. Guess what? I found an apartment. Thing is, I probable left for the apartment hours ago. I should have told you guys. I should have at least told you I was leaving. But I couldn't. I'm tired of screwing up peoples lives. I needed to leave. I needed to get away from you guys and be on my own. I can barely handle my life right now, and I don't need to give you guys anymore of my emotional baggage.**_

_**Love Always;  
Tori. **_

Cam handed the note over to Shane and Dustin.

"When Tori leaves, she really leaves." Shane muttered. Dustin scratched the back of his head.

"Do you think we should go looked for her?" He asked. Cam shook his head and sat down.

"Not yet." He muttered.

* * *

Tori stood at the entrance to her new job. She had quit Storm Chargers and started working at the Dive-Diner a town over from Blue Bay. The job was really close to Tori's apartment, which was located almost smack-in-the-middle between the two towns.

"New girl, over here. I have to show you how to work the cash register." Somebody yelled to Tori. Tori sighed and walked over to the register.

Tori's first day had been short. She had learned the basics and was now at her apartment eating a pint of Dutch chocolate Ice Cream. She had made the place nice and home-y in a day. There was a couch, a little T.V. Tori had bought with money she had been saving up for years. There was already a fridge in the apartment. And, Tori had purchased a single bed for her room since it was a two room apartment. And, the couch turned into a bed, so there was a place for Trini to sleep while she was staying there, which was going to be in two days.

Tori had the news turned on. There had been a news bulletin saying there was another monster in Blue Bay Harbor. Tori new, any minute, the rangers would be along to stop the alien, save the day, and bring all around happiness. Tori sighed and looked down at her morpher, which was sitting on her little coffee table. Tori let out another sigh, and went back to her Ice Cream.

"Good Luck Rangers." She muttered to herself.

* * *

The alien was gone, and the rangers weren't any happier.

"Dude, do you think we could go looking for Tori now?" Dustin asked. Cam, who had sat down in his computer chair swiveled around in it.

"She doesn't want to be found." He said.

"What do you mean, 'She doesn't want to be found'?" Blake asked. Cam sighed.

"I've been trying to trace her since the night we found the letter. Her morpher isn't on, she doesn't want to be found." He said.

* * *

Two more days flew by, and Tori hadn't tried to contact the guys. She was on her way to the airport to pick up Trini. It was a Thursday, and Tori was late. When Tori pulled up into the Pick-Up section of the airport, Trini was already waiting for her. Trini walked over to the van, opened the side door, threw her bags in the back, closed the door, and then climbed into the front.

"Wow, check out my sis' with the _White Oleander _look." Trini said, smirking at Tori. Tori rolled her eyes. "So, how's daddy dearest?" Trini asked Tori as she buckled her seat belt. Tori shrugged.

"Wouldn't know, haven't been to the house in over a week." She said. Trini raised an eyebrow and smiled a bit.

"Wait, does that mean..." She started. Tori pulled onto the freeway.

"I left." She said as she drove. Trini let out a little scream of glee. Tori rolled her eyes. She knew this was a big thing for her sister, but she wanted to change the subject. "So, how've you been?" She asked. Trini turned in her seat.

"Same old, same old. But, how are the guys? Dustin? Shane?" She asked. Tori moved in he seat uncomfortable.

"Um, I don't know. I haven't seen them for a few days either." She said. Trini furrowed her eyebrows.

"What do you mean?" She asked. Tori shrugged.

"I just had to get away, okay? Drop it." She snapped. Silence filled the car and within a few minutes, the two Hanson sisters arrived at Tori's apartment complex. "I'll help you get your stuff." Tori said, unbuckling her seat belt. Trini jumped out.

"I can get it." She snapped to Tori as she opened the side door and grabbed her bags. Tori sighed and let her head drop against the steering wheel. When Tori got out of the car, Trini was waiting and they both walked up to the apartment together. Tori unlocked her door once the two had gone up three flights of stairs. "Where am I sleeping?" Trini asked as she looked around the apartment. Tori shut the door and dropped the keys on the T.V.

"Um, I couldn't fit another bed in the apartment. But, um, the couch pulls out." She said. Trini dropped her bags and went over to the couch. She pulled the bed out slightly. She knew Tori was probable feeling a little bad about the situation. Trini turned to her sister.

"I've slept on worse." She said with a smile. Tori smiled back. Then she closed her eyes and put her hands over her ears.

"I don't want to know!" Tori said loudly in response to Trini's 'Slept On Worse' comment. Trini's laughter filled the room, and soon Tori joined in.

AN: The end to this chapter was more than a bit cheesy. But, I hope you keep reading! R/R:)


	8. Tears

AN: Song by Jann Arden 'Hanging By A Thread'

_Chapter Eight: Tears_

"Tori, do you wanna..." Trini started to yell to her sister, who was in another room. Suddenly, Tori came flying out of her room, tying her hair into a pony-tail.

"Sorry, Trini, can't. Gotta go to work." Tori said, grabbing her coat and bag. Trini sighed.

"You've worked every night this week." She said. Which was true. Trini had been at her sisters house for 6 days. The first day, the two sisters spent together watching movie and eating junk food. The other 5 were spent with Tori running off to work.

"I know, Trini. But I have to." Tori said. She gave no further explanation before running out of the door. Trini waited a few seconds and then stood up.

"I think I'm going to visit some old friends." She said, grabbing her keys to the apartment, her jacket, and her purse. She called a cab on her cell phone as she walked out the door.

* * *

Trini directed the cab to her destination. Once the cab had stopped, Trini got out and handed the cabbie money through the open window. 

"Keep the change." She muttered to the cabbie before walking off and into the store she had wanted to go to since her plain landed. Storm Chargers. Trini walked in and up to the cash register, where she spotted Dustin at the back doing repairs on a bike. "Can I get some serves out here!" She yelled back to him, leaning over the counter. Dustin's head shot up, and, after her realized it wasn't a real customer, a smile slowly spread across his face. He jumped up from his spot on the floor next to the bike, and ran around the counter. When he got to Trini, he grabbed her in a huge bear hug. Trini laughed. "Nice to see you too, Dustin." She said, hugging him back. Dustin pulled away from her.

"How have you been? I Haven't seen you for, like, two years." He said. Trini shrugged.

"Just been dealing with a pain in the ass sister for about a week, but other than that, I'm fine." She said. Dustin's smile faded.

"How is Tori?" He asked. Trini gave him a bit of a thoughtful smile.

"You and Shane are worried about her, huh?" She asked. Dustin sighed.

"Not just me and Shane, she's got other people worried about her also." He said. Trini raised her eyebrows.

"Big sis' made friends. Wow, the world really is a'changin'." She said, trying to make Dustin laugh. He did smile.

"Yeah, well, we all met over some interesting circumstances." He said. Trini heard the bell signaling that somebody was walking into the store.

"Hey man." Blake said. Trini turned around and saw Shane and another person. Shane smiled and came over, greeting Trini much like Dustin had.

"I didn't think I'd see you for this visit." He said, letting Trini go.

"Um, guys, wanna clue me in?" Blake asked. Shane nodded.

"Trini, Blake. Blake, this is Tori's sister Trini." He said to him. Blake's eyes widened. Trini rolled hers.

"You're all acting like the wicked witch of the surf was keeping me hidden in a dungeon some where." She said, folding her arms over her chest. "But, no such luck. Little Miss Tori went to work today." She said. Blake looked up from the spot on the floor he had been staring at.

"Where is Tori, I mean..." He started. But he cut himself off when he saw the thoughtful smile fall onto Trini's face.

"I'm sorry guys, I can't tell you that." She said, running a hand through her died black hair. She then fully smiled. "But, I guarantee, next time me and big sis' get into a fight, the info's yours." She said before turning and walking to and out the door of Storm Chargers.

* * *

Trini was home before Tori. When Tori walked in, she went straight to her closet. 

"So guess what, Trini?" She asked from her room as she changed.

"What?" Trini yelled back as she skimmed through a magazine. Tori came out of her room in a pair of blue-jeans and a black strapless top.

"I'm going to this seventeen and older club to sing tonight." She said, a smile on her face. Trini made a loud sigh and slapped her magazine down onto the floor.

"Anything to get away from me, huh?" She asked. Tori furrowed her eyebrows.

"What?" She asked. Trini stood up and turned to her sister.

"The only reason I come down here is to visit you!" She yelled. "And you work every day and night. The one night you have off, and you decide to go clubbing. And at a club where they don't let anyone in under 17 non-the-less." She said. Tori bit her lip.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't..." She stared.

"No," Trini yelled cutting her off. "You weren't! But the thing is, you hate your shitty life! You're trying to do everything in your power to get away from it! That includes getting away from me." She said. Trini then turned and grabbed her bag off the couch.

"Where are you going?" Tori asked, a sigh running through her voice.

"I'm going somewhere where people not only won't run away, but also where people might actually want me around." She said before walking to the apartment door, opening it, and slamming it shut. Tori brought her hands up to her face and rubbed her eyes. She then ran a hand through her hair. Tori looked around the apartment. She sighed and grabbed her coat. She stuck some money in one of the pockets and then left.

* * *

Once again, Trini pulled up somewhere in a cab. The cabbie looked at the place. It was a forest. Trini quickly gave him the money, and jumped out of the car. Trini started making the trek through the forest. About ten minutes later, Trini was at the water fall. She walked through it and found her self looking at another door. She walked through that one and found herself looked around the corner at Shane, Dustin, Blake, Hunter, Cam, and Jema. 

"Any luck Cam?" Hunter asked. Cam shook his head.

"I can't get a lock on her." He said sadly. Trini stepped out of her hiding place.

"It's taking you guys a lot to find someone that's just a town over." She said. All the guys - and girl - jumped at Trini's sudden appearance.

"Trini, what are you doing here?" Shane asked.

"Yeah, and um, how did you get in?" Dustin asked, scratching the back of his head.

"Number one: Looking for you guys, Number Two: With this." She said, pulling Tori's morpher out of her bag. "Tori had it sitting on her table at home and I'd seen her use it to get in here." Trini said. Shane raised an eyebrow.

"Where is she?" He asked suddenly.

"Some seventeen and older club near Storm Chargers." Trini said. Jema stepped forward.

"Who are you?" Jema asked. Trini put her hands on her hips.

"I'm Tori's sister." She said. Jema put her hands on her own hips, and then turned back to the boys.

"Somebody should probable go talk to her." She said. Cam stood up.

"I'll go." He said.

"You want somebody to go with you?" Blake asked. Cam shook his head.

"We're not dealing with a monster guys, we're dealing with Tori." He said before leaving Ops.

"Same thing." Trini muttered.

"Where's her apartment?" Hunter asked, ignoring Trini's last comment. "I mean, if Cam can't talk to her, it would make sense to be there when she got back." He said.

"21511 Stargrass Dr., Creek Place Apartment #23." Trini said without missing a beat. Dustin furrowed an eyebrow.

"That's right in the next town. So, why were we having such a hard time finding her?" He asked. The rest of them shrugged before heading out.

* * *

Jema and Trini were walking next to each other, on there way to two of the guys cars. 

"I can understand Tori's needing to leave her old life." Jema said suddenly to Trini as they walk. The four guys were about a yard behind them and weren't listening. Trini rolled her eyes. The guys were starting to catch up.

"You don't know anything about Tori." Trini muttered, an acidic tone in her voice. Jema grabbed Trini's arm, stopping her.

"Why do you both seem to hate me so goddamn much?" She asked. The boys, who had caught up, stopped. Jema took no notice. "Yeah, you're right," She said before Trini could answer her previous question. "I don't really know anything about your sister _or you _- and, for the record, not my fault - but I do _know_ what it's like to be abused by your father. I _know_ what it's like to run away from your problems. And I'll be _damned_ if I'm gonna let you both hate me for no good reason." She said before letting go of Trini's arm and continuing her treck toward her car. Trini stood still for a moment. So did the boys. The first person to move was Blake, who went running after Jema. A few seconds passed and they all started to walk again in silence.

* * *

Tori enter the club. It was pretty crowded. She had signed up to perform already, so she didn't have to worry about waiting on _that_ line. Tori was there for about 15 minutes before her name was call, saying she was needed 'On Deck'. 

Cam arrived at the club about 5 minutes after Tori was called backstage. When he walked in, she had just walked onto the stage.

Tori had her eyes closed as she stood at the mike. She knew the song by heart and was waiting for the music to get to the part where she started singing...

_**When I cry, I close my eyes  
and every tear falls down inside  
and I pray with all my might  
That I will find my heart in someone's arms  
When I cry, cry**_

Tori's eyes stayed shut. She didn't even notice Cam walk into the club. All she could here were the words and how much she felt them. How close they seemed to her life.

_**When I cry, when I am sad  
I think of every awful thing I ever did  
When I cry, there is no love  
No there is nothing that can comfort me enough  
When I cry, cry, cry**_

Tori felt a tear roll down her cheek. Singing the words made her feel them even more. Like they were apart of her.

_**The salt inside my body ruins everyone I come close to  
My hands are barely holding up my head  
I am so tired of looking at my feet  
and all the secrets that I keep  
My heart is barely hangin' by a thread, hangin' by a thread**_

Cam looked up at Tori. That was really why she left. She thought she was going to mess up their lives.

_**Oh look at me, at all I've done  
I've lost so many things that I so dearly love  
I lost my soul, I lost my pride  
Oh I lost any hope of having a sweet life  
So I cry, cry, cry**_

_She really though she had done terrible things, _Cam thought to himself. He was close enough to the stage to see a few tears slide down Tori's cheeks.

_**Oh the salt inside my body ruins everyone I come close to  
My hands are barely holding up my head  
Oh I'm so tired of looking at my feet  
and all the secrets that I keep  
My heart is barely hangin' by a thread, hangin' by a thread**_

Tori rapped her arms around her stomach protectively and opened her eyes as she sang the last verse.

_**I miss you all  
I wish I was  
With you now  
I wish I was**_

As Tori finished the song, she glanced down and saw Cam. She held his gaze for a few seconds as a few more tears made there way down Tori cheeks before she turned and ran off the stage. Cam forced his way through the crowd, trying to go after her. The second Cam got backstage, a side door was closing. Cam ran over and opened the side door. When he got outside, Tori was nowhere to be seen.


	9. The Rain

_Chapter Nine: The Rain_

A few hours later, at about midnight, the six Ninja's and sister where back at Ops.

"We waited for about three hours after you called us. I mean, we were at her apartment from 8 to 11 and she never showed." Hunter said.

"Where do you think she went?" Jema asked Trini (who had gotten past the little yell fest. earlier). Trini shrugged.

"I really have no idea." She said. Shane let out a yawn.

"Maybe we should keep looking for her." He said. Cam shook his head.

"No, you should all go home and get some sleep. I'm pretty sure Tori is fine. And, anyway, she might go back to the apartment, and if Trini's here, it'll be no use." He said.

"Um, do you think one of you guys could give me a ride home? I kinda ran out of taxi money." Trini said sheepishly. Dustin laughed a bit.

"I'll give you a ride." He said, standing up from his spot at the table in the middle of Ninja Ops. Trini stood up too, and they both headed off. Hunter, Shane, Blake, and Jema hadn't moved from their spots at the table. Suddenly, Hunter let out a yawn.

"Listen, I'm the last one to put sleep before work, but you guys should go." Cam said. The four reluctantly nodded, and left.

Cam walked into his room. He could here the rain pounding against the door he had that led to the outside. The rain was pouring so hard, he could barely distinguish the knock on his door from the water hitting it. But he did. Cam furrowed his eyebrows. _Who would knock on that door? _He asked himself as he walked over to open it. When he did, he took in a sharp breath.

"Tori, what are you doing out here, your soaked." He said, opening the door more widely for her to come in, but she didn't move.

"So, I saw you at the club. And, I know you know that because when I ran off the stage, you went running after me. And once I had ran about a block away from the club, I started thinking about the kiss." Tori said. Cam opened his mouth to say something, but Tori kept going. "And I started to wonder why I ran away. And then I realized, I thought that if I kissed you back I'd just be pulling you into my world of pain and misery. Because kissing me would be like opening this Pandora's box of emotion that was meant to stay sealed shut. And, I don't want to do that. Not to any of you." Tori said, getting more and more soaked as she talked. "But, I also realized that, I really did want to kiss you, and I still do." She added quickly. "Because," She continued. "When you found out what had been happening to me, you didn't judge. You just gave me a place to live, and you were my friend, and still are." She added hastily. "And, not to say that the others did judge me, or that they weren't my friends...but, I just..." She slowed down and sighed. "What I'm trying to say is..." She started. She finished the sentence by putting her hand at the back of Cam's neck and pulling him forward in a firm kiss. Tori pulled away, leaning her forehead against Cam's. "Do you see my point?" Tori asked, a small smile on her face. Cam nodded before pulling Tori into another kiss. The kiss was passionate. The two slowly made their way into Cam's room. They closed the door behind them, not braking the kiss the whole time.

AN: I do realise that chapter was shorter than most of these, but I hope you liked it. R/R!


	10. Okay?

A/N: I'm so sorry. I know I haven't posted on this story in like, a year. But I am now, that counts right? For those who have stuck around to see the next chapter, thank you so much. For those who haven't, I understand and I hope maybe you'll come back at some point. :) And anyone reading this story, you make my day just a little happier. g_  
_

_Chapter Ten: Okay?_

Tori opened her eyes the next morning to somebody playing with her hair. She glanced up and latched eyes with a glass-less Cam. A smile formed on her lips without her even realizing it.

"Hello," she said, her voice laced with sleep.

Cam smiled back at her. "Good morning," he said. Tori glanced over at the clock on Cam's bedside table. It read 7:30 a.m. Tori felt herself start to panic a bit as she sat up, clutching the sheet to her chest.

"Oh God, I left Trini alone at the apartment. She's probably worried about me, she's probably scared, she's..." Tori started to get up, still clutching the sheet. Before she could, Cam sat up a bit himself and rapped his arms around her shoulders. He then pulled her back down against him.

"16. She's 16, and I don't know if you know this, but she came out here all by herself yesterday," Cam said, feeling Tori start to relax against him. But, suddenly, she tensed up again.

"Out here? How did she..." Tori started.

"Apparently she followed you here once. Last night she stole your morpher and came looking for Shane and Dustin.," Cam said. Tori let herself relax again as she glanced up at Cam.

"You seem oddly calm about the blowing-of-our-secrets," she said with a kind of half-smirk. Cam smirked right back.

"Last nights events have left me rather calm and relaxed," he said. A blush rose up Tori's cheeks, she let her head drop onto Cam's chest so he wouldn't see it. Like that both rangers slowly drifted back off.

* * *

At around 8 Shane, Dustin, Jema, and Trini met up inside Ninja Ops. 

"Hunter and Blake are gonna be here around 9," Jema said.

"Oh, well, any luck?" Trini asked.

"Na, we couldn't find 'er," Shane said.

"I'm guessing she didn't come home last night?" Jema asked.

Trini nodded. "That would be correct," she said, dropping down in one of the chairs at the big table.

"Where's Cam? He's always up early," Dustin asked.

"Um, I'm right here," Cam said, walking out of the hallway that led to his room scratching the back of his head and looking like he had just woken up.

"We had no luck finding Tori at all," Jema said.

"I, um, I found Tori. She's here," he said, avoiding eyes as he walked over to the kitchen. I few minutes later he came back out with a coffee pot and a tray full of cups. Just then, Tori came out wearing clothes she had - thankfully - left in the guest room. She looked slightly surprised to see three people there.

"H-Hey guys," she said, avoiding eyes just as Cam had done, as she walked over to the coffee pot and grabbed a cup. Trini and Jema shared some kind of look, while Dustin just seemed oblivious.

"Tori, where have you been?" Dustin asked. "I mean, I know where you were but, why did you go there?" He amended. Tori sighed and sat down.

"I just felt like I was gonna get everyone hurt if I stayed," she said.

"But, that makes no sense," Shane said.

"Everything has just been so fucked up. I didn't want my bad luck to rub off on you guys," Tori said.

"But, Tor, if we got hurt, it would most likely be a result of our own actions. Besides, we're more likely to get hurt split up than together," Dustin said.

Trini and Shane stared at him for a moment, amazed, while Jema just looked like she agreed. Dustin gave Trini and Shane a 'What?' look.

"Last night we thought something really bad might have happened. Why didn't you come home?" Trini said with a hint of worry, but more curiosity.

Tori blushed. "Well, I...um...you see, I..." Tori started.

"Was to busy gettin' bu--" Jema started, an amused look on her face. Trini cut her off by jumping up and clamping a hand over Jema's mouth. Tori's eyes widened slightly and she almost dropped her cup. Jema pulled Trini's hand away from her mouth. "Okay, okay. If no one got it from that display, then I won't be telling you," she said, sitting down at the table.

Shane and Dustin had similar looks of confusion on their faces. By some miracle, Dustin realized it first.

"Oh God, I need to sit down," he said, doing just that. Tori watched the look on Shane's face and couldn't help but feel like she was watching a set of dominos that were going to fall over and there was nothing she could do about it. Cam sat himself down at the table, realizing that these two guys - that were like brothers to Tori - were probably going to kill him. Realization dawned on Shane's face also, and he took the seat next to Dustin.

"So, obviously I'm fine," Tori said with a nervous laugh in her voice. She glanced from Dustin and Shane to Jema and Trini, who both looked very amused. Tori looked back at Dustin and Shane. Suddenly, both boys' heads shot up and they began to glare at Cam, who started moving around uncomfortable. "Wait, why are you glaring at him? He didn't do anything to me," Tori said, finding herself getting a little miffed.

"He took advantage of you when you were vulnerable, that's what he did," Shane said through clenched teeth, still looking at Cam.

"Fuck You. I am anything but vulnerable, and he did _not_ take advantage of me," Tori snapped. Cam remained silent, knowing better than to say anything to Shane.

"He kinda did, Tor. I mean, you were really upset, weren't you?" Shane asked.

Tori sighed. "Not when I came here. I was kind of...happy when I came here. Like, there'd been a little fog concerning that part of my life, and it had just cleared suddenly," Tori said, her voice very calm.

Dustin continued to look at Cam. Even when Shane and Tori were talking. He watched the sliver of realization and guilt pass through Cam's eyes as he thought for a second that he might have taken advantage of Tori without thinking. And Dustin watched as the looked turned into a bit more than slight adoration as Tori said what she did. It didn't look sudden. It looked like he'd felt like this toward Tori for a while.

"Okay," Dustin said, looking over at Tori. Shane looked over at Dustin in surprise and saw the 'I've made up _my_ mind' look in his eyes. Shane let out a sigh.

"Okay," he said. Anger flashed in Tori's eyes.

"What 'Okay'?" she asked. "Okay like 'Okay, I've accepted it' or okay like 'The goat is good, you can have her'?" She snapped. Shane ran a hand through his hair.

"Okay like: it's your love life. You obviously don't have any regrets at this point in time," he said. He would have added more, but just then Hunter and Blake came into Ops.


End file.
